


Grave

by capt_eli



Category: Final Fantasy XII
Genre: Drabble, Gen, Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-06
Updated: 2014-07-06
Packaged: 2018-02-07 16:56:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1906761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/capt_eli/pseuds/capt_eli
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt: "My character will visit your character's grave."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Grave

The white sarcophagus is perfect. Gleaming marble carved into delicate swirling patterns with a name etched on the lid in script. Morbid, given the context, it’s still a beautiful work to be sure.

But it is too small.

When he first laid eyes on it at the funeral, Gabranth was stricken by its size. It was a sharp reminder of the tiny body within, the life stolen far before its time.

In the mausoleum, at the center between father and brothers, it’s so small. It’s sickening. Gabranth had vowed to protect House Solidor, yet here they lay, together in eternal rest. The white room is stifling, death heavy in the stagnant air. Tears spill from the judge’s eyes, not the for first time since the Bahamut, and likely not the last. He loathes seeing Vayne’s casket so close to Larsa when it was by his hand that the young lord died. _But it was as much my doing as his. Had I protected him, had I been stronger, he would not have—_

Gabranth can’t even finish the thought. _It should have been me._

The same thing he screamed at his brother in the pirate’s airship. He begged to go instead of Ffamran, begged to let him back aboard the Bahamut, but the pirate scoffed and said he wouldn’t know what to do, if he could even walk. His brother, and he will always be ‘his brother’, for he cannot bring himself to say his name, held him down as he sobbed. Gabranth tried not to look at the tiny body on the other cot but his eyes always found it and a new cry of grief ripped from his throat each time.

His brother is the only reason he lives now. Gabranth would have killed himself the first chance he found had his brother not reminded him. His words still ring in Gabranth’s ears. _Fight for Larsa, fight for the Archadia he wanted. Give him that and your duties are fulfilled._

“I will.”

Footsteps echo in the mausoleum and come to stop in the doorway. “Your Honor,” Zargabaath says gently. “There is much to be done.”

Gabranth touches the cold stone once and turns away. There is a new Archades to be built.

**Author's Note:**

> I took a set of prompts intended for RPers, so they all referred to "my character" and "your character", but I just asked for two characters instead and it game me more freedom in this particular prompt. Naturally, the first thought was Larsa visiting Gabs' grave, but I decided to flip it around just for fun. I'm actually quite proud of this one.


End file.
